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Earlier this week, Microsoft introduced two additional subscriptions subscriptions to partners that will try to sell them.

The couple is participating in an increasing number of subscription agreements, such as Redmond, Wash. The company has modeled on the Office 365 pattern. The new plans even contain the "365" mark, which Microsoft sees as a collective identifier.

Microsoft 365 is as CEO Satya Nadella introduced Monday "A fundamental departure in how we think about product formation" Composed of, at least at least two plans. The more expensive, the Microsoft 365 Enterprise, is simply a new name for an annual, two-piece product called "Secure Productive Enterprise E3" and "Secure Productive Enterprise E5." These SKUs (inventory units) were introduced to Microsoft's 2016 party conference. Like SPE, the M365 Enterprise throws Windows 10 Enterprise, Office 365 and Enterprise Mobility + Security into a bucket.

But "Microsoft 365 Business" or M365 Business for Cards is the more interesting of the two plans because it is actually new. Nadella thought the same. "I'm so excited about the product innovation you want to see today about small and medium-sized businesses," he said during a two-hour keynote before partners.

Telltale Games Minecraft History Mode Season 2 is now available on Xbox One and Windows 10 . In particular, the first episode of the fifth season is now alright, with the rest of the episodes coming later.

The second season continues the story of the first, after Jesse and friends on a new adventure. From game description:

Now, when Jesse and the gang have overcome the stormy storm, save the world and become completely super famous heroes, life has become a little more … complicated. With more responsibilities and less time for adventure, old friendships have begun to fade – at least until Jesse's hand is stuck in a creepy dress belonging to an old underwater temple. Together with old friends and new comrades, Jesse starts a whole new journey filled with hard choices, good times and at least one temperament lama.

Minecraft Developer Mojang has previously noted that decisions you made in the first season will actually transfer and affect parts of this new season. This season also has a voice cast that includes Patton Oswalt, Catherine Taber, Ashley Johnson and Scott Porter, along with cameos from YouTubers Stampy Cat and StacyPlays.

If you are jumping into Telltales latest, taking a narrative adventure in the Minecraft universe, you can download the first episode for $ 5 on Windows 10 or buy the entire season (with additional episodes later) on Xbox One for $ 25. There is unfortunately no Xbox Play Anywhere support so you must buy the game twice if you want it on both platforms.

Look at the Windows Store

Watch the Xbox Store

Windows 10 S is Microsoft's latest version of its Windows operating system. It's designed for students, and it's supposed to go on Google's Chromebook and Chrome OS ecosystem. What this means in practice is that 10 S is a more locked version of Windows where users are only able to install Windows Store applications. For the front page, by requiring applications to come from the Windows Store only, Microsoft can do a lot more to make sure the Windows 10 S is a fast and secure operating system.

So if you have a fancy new Surface Laptop or an budget HP ProBook then how to survive with these limitations and make the most of your Windows 10 S- Experience.

Web browsing

In today's cloud-based world, your web browser is almost a more important choice than your operating system. If you are in Windows 10S, it means that you are stuck using Microsoft Edge. Google does not make Chrome for Windows 10 S, and even if it did, Microsoft will not let you set it as the default web browser. Microsoft's Edge browser is not my preference, but it still works for most of what you need to do. I work almost completely web-based, and between writing and browsing I have not really worked into problems. Flash is also available at 10S, although Edge will disable it by default, even on pages like the Microsoft Store.

However, the biggest irritation with Edge imports user data. While Edge on ordinary Windows can import bookmarks and other data from installed browsers, Windows 10 S can not grab data from other browsers. It's messy, but the easiest way to get all your Chrome or Opera data for Windows 10 S is to export bookmarks to an HTML file and import them manually. Alternatively, you can get another Windows 10 computer, sync your Chrome settings, import them to the edge, and then sync them to your Windows 10 S machine.

Similarly, Edge does not conveniently store any of my usernames or passwords, but using a password management service like LastPass (which works across the platform and is available through Windows 10 Store) will help with To simplify the process.

Frustrating, Windows 10 S is still Windows at the core so sites will still ask you to install apps (Yes, Google, I prefer to use Chrome but I can not! ), And installers Will even download the download as they normally would. You just can not install anything outside the store. Microsoft must redirect users to the Windows Store when they try to download .exe files on Windows 10 S, but it is unclear how far it is implemented and there is clearly more work to be done to make it clear to consumers .

Music

Hereafter we have music. Of course, if you use Microsoft's Groove Music service, you're already good at going, but I suppose it's about fewer people than Microsoft wants. More likely you are a Spotify user. While you may have been forced to use a mobile version of the Spotify app at a time, Microsoft now offers the standard desktop version of Spotify in the Windows Store so you can use it as you would any other computer.

If you are an Apple Music subscriber, you are out of luck right now. Apple does not offer a web player so you need iTunes. However, at Build 2017, Microsoft announced that it has reached an agreement with Apple, and will soon offer iTunes on Windows Store although we still do not have a fixed date for when it happens.

Of course, all web-based services like Pandora, Google Play Music, YouTube Music or Tidal will work fine in Edge.

Word Processing

If you buy a Windows 10 S machine, there is a good chance that you are a student or professional who needs some word processing at some point. Since this is Windows, you will probably use Microsoft Word to do that.

This is where things get a little complicated. Microsoft offers two versions of Office for Windows 10 S right now: A "preview" version of the full desktop office now available through the Windows Store and mobile version Office that Microsoft created for mobile devices like tablets and phones. (The mobile versions are hidden in search, but you can find them here .) Which one you are using is a matter of preference, but if you can Offering some of the more advanced features of Word and PowerPoint, I personally think that the mobile version is a little more streamlined to get things done quickly.

If you are not an Office 365 subscriber you will not really be able to use either a version of Office. In that case, Google Docs which you can access via Edge, probably your best bet.

Finally, if you're just looking for a quick text editor, Appy Text is the right way. It's free, fast and even supports markdown, making it perfect for jogging of quick notes or, say, writing guides for importing to your site's publishing system.

Something frustrating when you save documents in the cloud, you're pretty stuck with OneDrive or using web apps to access services like Dropbox or Google Drive – while you can install a Dropbox app from the Windows Store To view your files, you can not sync them without the full desktop app that you can not install on Windows 10 S.

E-mail

Microsoft's own built-in mail app is quite good, even with Gmail. There are also few options in the store, but your best bet is to just use Gmail in Edge and enable desktop notifications that allow you to receive regular Windows notifications.

Entertainment

Edge still works and for some reason you have a pathological reluctance to Netflix Hulu and most of the other video services have dedicated Windows Store apps. No matter what, you will be able to binge watch just fine.

Gaming

There is no way to get to your Steam library on Windows 10S, but you have access to the Windows Store for games, which is not so serious that Microsoft now pushes the Xbox Play Anywhere program to Cross-purchase between Xbox One consoles and Windows PCs. However, it's not that big deal, but if you're running Windows 10S, the computer you're using is probably not built for gaming anyway.

Image and Video

Can you do it in Paint? Paint is installed! You've even got Paint 3D! None? Okay, you have Photoshop Express in the store, which may clamp for a bit of light image editing, but if you try to do seriously creative work, Windows 10S is probably not the operating system for you.

Give up and install full Windows

See, you tried to run through Microsoft's hoops. You did it really! And you did it well. But fortunately, Microsoft also offers a upgrade from Windows 10 S to the full version of Windows 10. Check The Verge's Guide Here to get full Instructions on how to do it – even if you do not use a Surface Laptop, which currently offers Windows 10 Pro upgrade for free, there is a one-time $ 49 fee for the upgrade.

On the other hand, we see you across Google Chrome and Adobe products.

My Windows Vista PC works perfectly and I have Kaspersky Internet Security. I have been told that I need a new PC because I could get a virus now, as Microsoft no longer supports Vista. A new PC that replaces the one I have costs about $ 1,200. And it's a pity when I'm not having trouble, but I'm worried it might be hacked. ksallatt

I thought that I would write about Windows Vista that Microsoft stopped supporting on April 12th. However, the questions continue, and this week, other three have made me return to the frog.

I also agree that it's good to keep the kitten running, even though hard drives tend to fail as they grow older and old PCs are not as effective as modern machines. (They use more electricity, but no more than a filament lamp.) No matter how you do not buy a new machine, you can upgrade from Vista to Windows 7 or 10 or even Linux.

Vista works well

If your PC is running Vista well, it should also run Windows 7 or better. To check compatibility, download Microsoft's Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor . If the result is positive, buy a Windows 7 upgrade or a full copy of Windows 7 – they are the same. There are many sources for cheap copies of Windows 7, but as always, be aware of it.

Overall, I think it's best to upgrade to Windows 10 which is significantly safer than Windows 7. Microsoft does not support upgrades from Vista (launched in January 2007) to Windows 10 (July 2015)). The distance is too wide. Therefore, there is no upgrade advisor to test it. But if your pc is running Windows 7, it will probably run Windows 10.

Microsoft supports an upgrade from Windows 7 to Windows 10 so you can always try it without buying a copy of Windows 10. If that does not work well, you can easily roll it back to Windows 7 as long as you shop For 30 days. Then, [10459024] Windows 10 removes its backup of the old operating system to save space.

Regular readers can remember that I recommended moving to Windows 7 as quickly as possible (especially from Windows XP) and keep it as long as possible. But after two years of Windows 10, I think it's much better.

If you hold Windows 7, remember that support ends January 14, 2020. It will give you two and a half years after which you may want to buy a new PC.

If your PC can not run Windows 7 or 10, you can always try Linux. I recommend Linux Mint . This will not run your existing Windows programs, and you will have to learn many new things. The transition becomes easier if you can do most things in a web browser and if you do not need any Adobe, Microsoft or Apple software, including iTunes. There are replacements, but they involve some victims and even more learning. It depends on how much you appreciate your time.

Jos is in the same boat as ksallatt. His HP has a 2.4GHz Intel Q6600 processor and 2GB of memory. Q6600 has a PassMark benchmark score of 2971 so this is a mid range PC that could run Windows 10 well, but I highly recommend upgrading the memory. Use Crucial's System Scanner to check the upgrade options, but I would dump 2GB and install 8GB.

In fact, given the current state of Chrome, Google must provide free 8GB upgrades to anyone using it.

Vista does not work well

Other readers report that Vista is not working well. Jacob says, "Vista Home Premium no longer works on most of my websites," while Jade says, "It's getting stuck and I'm hard for almost everything. I'll be waiting all the time." Again, run Upgrade Advisor to see what's on. The hard part decides whether to upgrade or buy a new PC.

Jacob's desk has a 2.33GHz Intel Core2 Q8200 and 8GB memory. Q8200 has a PassMark score of 2825 primarily because it is a quadcore chip. It has about half of a modern Core i3-6100 performance, but it's still good enough to make the " mid range " table. It must run Windows 10 well, especially with 8 GB of memory, so follow the upgrade advice above.

Jan and Rob have a Dell Inspiron 530S laptop with a 2.83 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo E8300 with 3GB of memory. The E8300 has a PassMark score of 1996 primarily because it has two cores instead of four. This drops into " low mid range " table.

The Inspiron 530S is definitely running Windows 8.1 so it needs to run Windows 10 and there seems to be drivers available. While 3GB is less memory than I would like, you run 32-bit Vista now, so 32-bit Windows 10 should be OK. You would get better performance by installing more memory (some models could take 8GB), upgrading to 64-bit Windows, and replacing the hard drive with a 2.5in SSD (solid state drive). Use Crucial's System Scanner to check the upgrade options and then decide if it would be better to put cash on a new laptop. Your Dell may be 10 years old. These things do not last forever.

Jade has an Acer Aspire 5610-2328 laptop with a 1.6 GHz Pentium T2060 processor, but she does not mention the memory. From the show I would guess 2GB or even less. The T2060 PassMark score is only 675 which puts it on the " low-end " table. Frankly, I'm looking for a minimum score of at least twice that and 10 times what's preferred. (My current Dell desktop, purchased in 2011, scores 6,282.)

Jade, you could upgrade Acer with more memory and an SSD, but it's really not worth it.

I do not recommend Linux because you say you are "not good at all computer stuff". However, as you use your PC for social media, YouTube and the like, you can probably replace it with a cheap Windows 10 laptop (preferably with 4GB memory) or a similar Chromebook . You have used your iPhone instead of your PC, but are there any things that the iPhone can not do? If not, you may also consider replacing your PC with an iPad .

Free Windows 10

Although the free upgrade offer ended almost a year ago, you can still get Windows 10 without paying for it. If your PC was licensed and enabled, you can still upgrade using the Windows 7/8 / 8.1 product key. You just need to download Windows 10 and Media Creation Tool and create an installation DVD or USB thumbdrive.

Microsoft has also maintained the well-known loophole for people who need "utilities" like the magnifier, screen reader and keyboard on screen.

Of course, you still need to upgrade from Vista to Windows 7 first.

There are two other ways to install Windows 10 directly by making a "clean installation." This removes Vista and all your programs and data, so you need to make backups before proceeding.

The first: Join the Windows Insider application. This allows Windows 10 for free to act as guinea pigs for error testing. The downsides are that it is full of telemetry, there are quite a few buildings, and of course it is buggies than the version used by paying customers.

The other is to install Windows 10 without activating it. You will get a watermark on your desktop, you can not personalize it, and a few features do not work. However, it is a perfectly usable system, far more secure than using a piracy of Windows, and it costs the same as Linux .

Microsoft may change the rules at any time. It can close the loopholes and make non-activated copies more painful to use. But it wants everyone on Windows 10, so it can not squeeze down for a while.

Do you have a question? Send it to Ask.Jack@theguardian.com

Earlier this week, Microsoft introduced two additional subscriptions subscriptions to partners that will try to sell them.

The couple is participating in an increasing number of subscription agreements, such as Redmond, Wash. The company has modeled on the Office 365 pattern. The new plans even contain the "365" mark, which Microsoft sees as a collective identifier.

Microsoft 365 is as CEO Satya Nadella introduced Monday "A fundamental departure in how we think about product formation" Composed of, at least at least two plans. The more expensive, the Microsoft 365 Enterprise, is simply a new name for an annual, two-piece product called "Secure Productive Enterprise E3" and "Secure Productive Enterprise E5." These SKUs (inventory units) were introduced to Microsoft's 2016 party conference. Like SPE, the M365 Enterprise throws Windows 10 Enterprise, Office 365 and Enterprise Mobility + Security into a bucket.

But "Microsoft 365 Business" or M365 Business for Cards is the more interesting of the two plans because it is actually new. Nadella thought the same. "I'm so excited about the product innovation you want to see today about small and medium-sized businesses," he said during a two-hour keynote before partners.

So what is Microsoft 365 Business? It's the new deal Microsoft will push later this year after an unspecified time in preview, starting August 2nd.

M365 Business Includes:

Office 365 Business Premium, a Software and Service Plan that includes all Office applications, hosted Exchange email, OneDrive storage service and more. Alone costs Office 365 Business Premium $ 12.50 per. User per. Month when invoiced annually.

Windows 10 Pro: Devices running Windows 7 Professional or Windows 8.1 Pro can be upgraded to Windows 10 Pro under M365 Business.

Windows 10 Business: According to Microsoft, Windows 10 Business is a set of cloud [based] services and device management features that complement Windows 10 Pro and enable central management and security management by Microsoft 365 Business. "The services and tools include a subset of them from Intune, Microsoft's enterprise mobility management (EMM) platform and Windows AutoPilot, an automated deployment service bundled with Windows 10's March 2017 feature upgrade, aka 1703 and Creators Update